The only Grand Slam to be played on clay, is one of the most difficult to surmount and chronologically is the second major to be played in the year. If you are looking for all the information on how much do players earn at the French Open and the prize money associated with every stage of the French Open, you can get all the information below.
Please Note: You can also check the prize money details for Australian Open here, Wimbledon here and US Open here.
The French Open, also known as the Roland Garros is one of the four Grand Slams on the tennis calendar and the only one which is played on the clay courts.
It is staged in Paris since 1891 and is considered to be the most demanding tennis tournament in the world with a total of seven rounds in the main draw and a best of five sets format.
Currently, it is held every year at the end of May and start of June.
Until 1924, the tournament was only for the “French Club Members” but from 1925 onward all the amateurs were allowed to participate at the event.
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When did the French Open First Award Players any Prize Money?
The Roland Garros was quite late in giving equal prize money to both the men’s and women’s participants. While the US Open was the first Grand Slam to offer equal payback in 1973 and the Australian Open the second in 2001.
French Open was just one year ahead of Wimbledon in offering equal pay to men’s & women’s in 2006.
But the French Open had already taken a significant step back in 1991 when they announced that they would keep only a 5% gap between the prize money between men’s and women’s prize money.
How Much did the French Open Winners Earn in 1968?
The French Open was the first Grand Slam ever in the Open era and allowed professionals to participate in the tournament from 1968 onward.
The total prize money back then was $32,270. Interestingly, the first even winner in the women’s category was Nancy Richey from the USA. She had won $7,100 but could only take home $27 since she was still an amateur.
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Comparison with other Grand Slams
Comparing the numbers between all the four Grand Slams, the winners and the runners up of the French Open historically take home the least amount of prize money.
At present the winners of the US Open singles category take home USD 3.8 million, the numbers for the Wimbledon and the Australian Open are USD 2.98 million & USD 2.757 respectively.
On the other hand, the winners at the French Open take home approximately USD 2.3 million. This trend is similar for the runners up and the semi-finalists as well.
Focus on Paying More to Early Round Losers
Contrary to being the lowest paying Grand Slam for players reaching the quarter-finals and further, the French Open is the best paying Slam for players appearing in the early rounds at the tournament.
It pays more than the “Richest Grand Slam” on the calendar, US Open for its first-round participants; USD 65,000 compared to USD 54,000.
It also pays more than every other Grand Slam for players reaching round two, round three and round four respectively.
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Prize Money for 2023 French Open
The total money purse for the 2022 edition is €43.6 million and it can be expected to see a rise of around 10% for this year, taking its total to over USD 50 million.
Players making it to the first qualifying round earn about €7,000, while those making it to the main draw of the singles competition but losing in the first round stood to gain €62,000.
Getting to the final meant, a player earned at least a million euros, while the winner took home a package of €2.2 million.
| Men's & Women's Singles (2019) | Prize Money EURO | Prize Money USD |
|---|---|---|
| Q1 | 7,000 | 7,375 |
| Q2 | 12,250 | 12,900 |
| Q3 | 24,000 | 25,280 |
| Round 1 | 62,000 | 65,300 |
| Round 2 | 86,000 | 90,600 |
| Round 3 | 125,800 | 132,000 |
| Round 4 | 220,000 | 231,700 |
| Quarter-Final | 380,000 | 400,000 |
| Semi-Final | 600,000 | 632,000 |
| Runner Up | 1,100,000 | 1,158,800 |
| Winner | 2,200,000 | 2,317,000 |
The doubles competition saw the first round losing team earn €15,500, while the losing semifinalists stood to gain €146,000. The runner-up team earned €290,000 while the French Open doubles winners scooped a prize money of €580,000.
| Men's & Women's Doubles (Per Team) | Prize Money EURO | Prize Money USD |
|---|---|---|
| Round 1 | 15,500 | 16,328 |
| Round 2 | 25,000 | 26,300 |
| Round 3 | 42,000 | 44,250 |
| Quarter-Final | 79,500 | 83,750 |
| Semi-Final | 146,000 | 153,000 |
| Runner Up | 290,000 | 300,500 |
| Winner | 580,000 | 610,000 |
The mixed doubles event at the French Open has teams making it to the first round earning at least €5,000 while quarterfinalists pocketing €17,500. The team making it to the final but falling at the hurdle earned €61,000 with the winners taking home €122,000.
| Mixed Doubles (Per Team) | Prize Money EURO | Prize Money USD |
|---|---|---|
| Round 1 | 5,000 | 5,892 |
| Round 2 | 10,000 | 11,784 |
| Quarter-Final | 17,500 | 20,622 |
| Semi-Final | 31,000 | 36,530 |
| Runner Up | 61,000 | 71,882 |
| Winner | 122,000 | 143,765 |
The French Open also organizes wheelchair matches in both, the singles and doubles categories.
The singles competition of the wheelchair tournament begins with the quarterfinals and the team losing at that stage still earns €6,750 while the semifinalists, runner-up and the winners earn €13,500, €26,500 and €53,000 respectively.
At the doubles, there are just two rounds – the semifinals and final. The winning team of the wheelchair doubles gains €16,000.
| Wheelchair Singles | Prize Money EURO | Prize Money USD |
|---|---|---|
| Quarter-Final | 6,750 | 7,954 |
| Semi-Final | 13,500 | 15,908 |
| Runner Up | 26,500 | 31,228 |
| Winner | 53,000 | 62,455 |
| Wheelchair Doubles (Per Team) | Prize Money EURO | Prize Money USD |
|---|---|---|
| Semi-Final | 4,750 | 5,597 |
| Runner Up | 8,000 | 9,427 |
| Winner | 16,000 | 18,854 |
What Trophies do French Open Winners Also Get?
The men’s singles winner at Roland-Garros is awarded the Coupe des Mousquetaires, while the trophy awarded to the women’s singles winner is the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen.
There are trophies awarded to the men’s doubles, women’s doubles and mixed doubles title winners as well; namely Coupe Jacques Brugnon, Coupe Simone Mathieu and Coupe Marcel Bernard respectively.